Chapter 147: The Bridal Chamber

Although I loathed Li Xiaojuan, I could not accept her kowtowing to me, so I hastily reached out and helped her up. Seeing her look of sheer terror, it was evident that Li Xiaojuan had been frightened out of her wits to be reduced to such a state.

I grabbed Li Xiaojuan's palm and used an ancient technique to press firmly on the Xiaotianxin point in the center of her hand. Li Xiaojuan let out a cry of pain. Following that, the terror in her eyes began to slowly recede, replaced by a growing daze as she looked at me.

"Auntie, what just happened?" I asked in bewilderment once Li Xiaojuan had returned to her senses.

Hearing my question, Li Xiaojuan's pupils contracted sharply. She seemed to recall some deeply horrifying event, and then, staring blankly upstairs, she said in a trembling voice, "Xiaoli, Xiaoli is going to kill me."

Bai Xiaoli was going to kill Li Xiaojuan?

"Impossible, how could Bai Xiaoli kill you?" No matter what, I refused to believe it. Someone as well-read and courteous as Bai Xiaoli could never raise a murderous hand against her own mother.

Perhaps reminded of that terrifying scene from moments earlier, Li Xiaojuan's body began to shake uncontrollably once more. With a sob in her voice, she cried, "It's all my fault, my fault for slapping her." At this, Li Xiaojuan's legs went weak, and she collapsed back onto the floor, slapping her own face repeatedly. As she struck herself, she muttered, "I deserve to die, I deserve to die, I'm a vile wretch, I shouldn't exist in this world."

Seeing Li Xiaojuan lose her mind all over again, I shook my head and gently tapped her on the head, causing her to pass out. I recalled the mass of black Qi on Li Xiaojuan's face after she struck Bai Xiaoli at the wedding earlier. Without the intervention of a powerful master, this arrogant and ignorant wealthy matron would likely either go mad or die.

After settling Li Xiaojuan comfortably, I climbed the stairs and reached the bridal chamber prepared for Bai Xiaoli and me. Because Bai Ranhe was a man who deeply valued tradition, the bridal chamber had been decorated entirely in accordance with ancient wedding customs. A pair of festive paper-cuts adorned the windows, the large bed was covered with a neat red quilt embroidered with dragons and phoenixes, and two red candles flickered on the nightstand beside the bed, encased in carved solid wood lanterns.

It was indeed a night of blooming flowers and a full moon, the bridal night of the wedding chamber.

At this moment, Bai Xiaoli, dressed in a traditional phoenix coronet and embroidered robes with a red veil covering her head, was sitting quietly on the edge of the bed. Hearing the sound of the door opening, she asked in a soft voice, "Yangxi, is that you?"

Bai Xiaoli's voice carried a hint of nervousness. After I gave a soft reply, the young woman nervously clutched the red bedsheets with both hands and said with a touch of playful grievance, "What took you so long? I was about to fall asleep."

I glanced toward Bai Xiaoli; her phone was resting on the nightstand, with several unread WeChat notifications glowing on the screen, indicating she hadn't touched it at all.

"Have you been waiting for me this whole time?" Feeling a twinge of guilt, I walked over to Bai Xiaoli and sat down beside her. A faint, refreshing fragrance of youth drifted from her, instantly soothing the mind.

Tense with nervousness, Bai Xiaoli sat bolt upright and said, "The elders said that on a girl's wedding day, her veil can only be lifted by her husband. If you don't lift the veil, how can I sleep?" In the quiet stillness of the night, her tone carried a trace of reproach as she continued, "My father already told me you finished dealing with Xu Yingying ages ago. Why did you wait until so late to come? Do you not like me?"

"No, no, I just ran into some things," I hurriedly explained, then placed both hands gently on Bai Xiaoli's shoulders and said softly, "You little fool, how could I not like you?"

Hearing me say this, Bai Xiaoli quieted down and said no more.

The candle flames flickered, casting a mesmerizing glow from the vibrant red candles.

I slowly reached out to lift the red veil from Bai Xiaoli's head. Beneath that crimson cloth lay a breathtakingly beautiful face. The thought that tonight this woman would truly be mine made my heart race.

Yet, just as my fingers grasped the red veil over Bai Xiaoli's head, she suddenly reached out and seized my wrist, stopping me from lifting the covering.

I froze for a moment, assuming Bai Xiaoli was simply not ready yet, and made to withdraw my hand. But she gripped my hand with a dead-locked tenacity, refusing to let me pull away.

"What is it, Xiaoli?" I asked in confusion, a sudden ominous premonition stirring in my heart.

The nervous tension Bai Xiaoli had displayed moments earlier was completely gone, replaced by a chilling gloom. The air around us grew heavy with the stale scent of the Yellow River water.

In that instant, a blinding realization struck me: she was not Bai Xiaoli!